Stockton-fightern Nate Diaz lyckades bli den första att avsluta den regerande fjäderviktsmästaren Conor McGregor i UFC när han i mars besegrade irländaren via submission i den andra ronden. Ända sedan den förlusten har Conor lagt ned all fokus på att ta revansch mot Nate, som han skulle ha mött på UFC 200 men som nu flyttats till UFC 203 i slutet av augusti. Inför mötet är Conor självsäker och tror att han kommer att leka med Nate denna gång.
Så här berättade Conor under gårdagens release-fest av John Kavanaghs självbiografi.
I’m feeling very confident in myself that I’ll go in and I’ll toy with this man. Eight minutes of the fight, I was toying with him. That fadeaway left hand that he caught me with, my senses were still there. It was almost like a fatigue thing that my balance was gone.
I always look back and question and say, what would have happened if I would have just weathered the storm? He was one or two shots being done, I feel. I feel when that left hand hit, he got this burst of energy. You can see it in his corner, they went insane. It was like they won the lotto. Then I took a couple shots and I shot [for a takedown] and I ended up in that guillotine and then it was just downhill from there. I wonder what would have happened if I just kept my hands up, I kept circling, took the smacks and survived. Eventually his energy that he gained from that left-hand shot would have dipped again and then round three would have began. There’s a lot of questions and stuff I’m confident I can improve next time. I’m going in here confident that I will get this rematch back.
Conor har under de senaste veckorna setts träna med världsmästare i grappling och boxare som har liknande kroppsform som Nate inför deras re-match.
